Vision Recycling Case Study

Established in early 2019, Vision Recycling Ltd is a Worcester-based business specialising in the recycling of electrical items, specifically flat screen televisions.

Described by Founder Dan Yeomans as “a posh scrapyard”, Vision Recycling takes broken TVs and breaks them down to raw components whilst crucially removing the lights in the back of the screen which must be discarded correctly. Due to the nature of the electrical items, and the various components of a TV, this typically requires a lot of time and manual labour.

However, within the last year, Dan saw the opportunity to develop a more efficient way of working by using new machinery to dismantle the TVs and extract the components in a fraction of the time, as he explains:

“Traditionally you’d get a screwdriver or drill to remove the bulbs in the back, but the new machinery we developed splits the TVs open so the bulbs in the back can be removed far quicker. It cuts a 10-minute process down to 60 seconds because it pulls the screen apart. The machinery that we developed is the first of its kind within this price range – other machines like this cost millions.”

But having only started the business less than a year prior, Dan required funding to help turn his machinery ideas into a reality, which is when he discovered Worcestershire County Council’s Proof of Concept grant:

“I first found out about the grant about 12 months ago, which was only within six months of starting the business. The financial support appealed to me straight away, and it ticked all of our boxes, so I just applied. I had the business concept ready to go, but it was a really great opportunity for us to expand the business, and it allowed us to get some invaluable help with starting the process.”

“I can’t stress how easy it was to apply, it was definitely the easiest process for a grant I’ve ever come across. Due to past experiences and the fact that I was applying for quite a lot of money, I initially thought that it might be difficult to navigate, but it was the complete opposite. I simply called up and filled in a form to make sure I was eligible, then I waited a short amount of time to be approved by the panel and within a few weeks we were underway and working with the Proof of Concept team – I’d definitely recommend it.”

Following his application, Dan was awarded a £30,000 grant which has allowed Vision Recycling to invest in the new machinery:

“As a result of the grant, we’ve seen rapid growth and we’re now generating a positive revenue stream. We got the machine quicker than we anticipated, so the money has massively accelerated the whole process and allowed us to take on bigger contracts and new staff. To anybody thinking about applying - do it! To me, it’s a no brainer!”

The grant has allowed Dan to plan towards a positive and progressive future for Vision Recycling, and despite the COVID-19 pandemic, he has an optimistic outlook with plans in the pipeline:

“We are looking at introducing artificial intelligence (AI) into the business for the future, as machinery can be dangerous and the accident rate within the recycling industry is sky high. AI will help to eliminate human contact around the machinery to help combat this issue and help to maintain a safe environment.”

Find out more about Proof of Concept here: https://www.worcestershire.gov.uk/info/20282/worcestershire_proof_of_concept